Great Jedi Purge
The Great Jedi Purge is a fictional historical event in the Star Wars space opera series created by George Lucas. It is a major plot element in the 2005 film Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, and is referenced in the ''Star Wars'' Expanded Universe. In the film, the Jedi are nearly exterminated by the Clone Army, on the order of the Sith Lord Darth Sidious, in retaliation for two failed Jedi assassination attempts on his life. Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda are among a handful of known surviving Jedi. The first person to be issued this order was Clone Commander Cody (who until then was under the command of Jedi General Kenobi). Order 66 The text of Order 66 (as given in Chapter Twenty of the novel Star Wars Republic Commando: True Colors) reads: In the episode "Fugitive" of ''Star Wars: The Clone Wars'', it is revealed that the order was genetically programmed into every clone so that they would be more obedient when the order was given. Depiction Operation: Knightfall begins shortly before the end of the Clone Wars, which had been conceived as part of a scheme by Chancellor Palpatine to eliminate the Jedi and establish himself as the Emperor of the galaxy. In the sixth season of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Order 66 was nearly prematurely exposed due to a malfunction in clone trooper Tup's biochip that resulted in his alternating between his regular self and entering a trance-like state, the latter of which resulted in him shooting a Jedi Master named Tiplar during a battle and forcing a Republic retreat from the planet. Darth Sidious, and his apprentice Darth Tyranus learned of this from Admiral Trench, and planned to have Tup abducted during a transport to Kamino to investigate his erratic behavior, realizing that his current status will most likely result in their true plans for the war, including the contingency order, being exposed to the Jedi. The ARC Troopers Fives and Rex managed to retrieve Tup, although this also resulted in the former uncovering the order and thus the conspiracy. Fives would later end up killed due to Palpatine framing him for an assassination attempt, and unable to tell either Anakin Skywalker or Rex about the contingency order, the overall conspiracy, or the Supreme Chancellor's involvement in it due to being drugged earlier. At some point between the noted events of Episodes II and III, members of the Jedi council begin to suspect the Chancellor is tied to Sidious and Count Dooku's Separatist army. In Revenge of the Sith, Jedi Master Mace Windu openly states to the Jedi Council that he distrusts the Chancellor; Obi-Wan Kenobi expresses similar misgivings. Anakin Skywalker, the "Chosen One" of Jedi prophecy, finds out that Palpatine is actually Darth Sidious, the Dark Lord of the Sith for whom the Jedi have been searching for more than a decade. Anakin reports Palpatine's treachery to Windu, who then leads a small team of fellow Jedi Masters—Agen Kolar, Saesee Tiin, and Kit Fisto—to arrest Sidious. In the ensuing lightsaber duel, Sidious quickly and almost effortlessly kills Windu's companions. Windu engages Palpatine in a furious battle, finally disarming him. As Windu reasserts Palpatine's arrest, Anakin suddenly enters the room while Palpatine pleads for his own life. Palpatine had long been nurturing the young Jedi's desire for power and had recently roused Anakin's fear for the safety of his pregnant wife, Padmé Amidala. Before Windu can strike down the Chancellor after fending off a sneak attack by the Sith, Anakin severs Windu's hand with his lightsaber, allowing Sidious to kill him. Desperate to save Padme, Darth Sidious persuades Anakin to join him as his Sith apprentice, gives him the Sith name Darth Vader, and orders him to exterminate the Jedi. He sends his new apprentice to the Jedi Temple along with the 501st Clone Trooper Legion to kill the Jedi there. Palpatine says that if Vader carries out his commands, he will be strong enough in the dark side to save Padmé, and so Vader accepts, even killing the many children under the Temple's protection. Palpatine orders an aide to shut down the droid armies, then instructs the clone troopers to carry out Order 66. Among the most notable Jedi killed at the very beginning of the purge are Ki-Adi-Mundi, Aayla Secura, Plo Koon and Stass Allie. Returning to Coruscant, Masters Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi enter the Temple long enough to re-encode a secret retreat signal being broadcast by the in-house communications ordering all Jedi to return to the Jedi Temple, instead warning all surviving Jedi about the treachery and to take precautions. During a Senate session, Palpatine declares the Jedi traitors, reorganizes the Republic into the Galactic Empire, and declares himself Emperor of the Galaxy. Jedi survivors Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi survive the initial purge and are picked up by Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan aboard his diplomatic cruiser Tantive IV. Organa, after witnessing the young Jedi Zett Jukassa being killed by clone troopers, has secretly remained loyal to the Jedi. Kenobi and Yoda then attempt to kill the Sith Lords, with Yoda engaging Sidious in combat, and Obi-Wan fighting Vader. Yoda fights Sidious into a stalemate and is forced to flee at the last moment and escapes; whereas Kenobi defeats and mortally wounds his former apprentice, leaving him to die; however, Vader is rescued by the Emperor and fitted with the black life-support suit he wears for the remainder of his life. Realizing they are in no position to oppose the Empire for the time being, Kenobi and Yoda go into hiding. Additionally, they decide that Luke and Leia, the children of Anakin and Padmé (who had died giving birth to them), would need to be raised separately and in hiding to protect them from Sidious and Vader. Bail Organa volunteers to adopt Leia with his wife on Alderaan. By Yoda's decision, Luke would be raised by Anakin's stepbrother, Owen Lars, on Tatooine, while Kenobi watches over him from a distance. Yoda, for his part, chooses exile on an uninhabited planet in the Dagobah System, where strong dark side energies would mask his presence from the Emperor. A Jedi named Kanan Jarrus, also survives the Great Jedi Purge. He joins a small rebel crew later, which is fighting against the Empire, under the control of the Emperor.He is introduced in a video trailer for the show: Star Wars Rebels, by Star Wars, titled, Star Wars Rebels: Meet Kanan, the Cowboy Jedi (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXuFi2vH_PQ) Expanded Universe The Expanded Universe indicates that other Jedi also survive the initial stages of the Purge, though few of these Jedi live to see the fall of the Empire. Some Jedi leaders (like Rahm Kota) had no clones in their squadron, affording an easy escape. In some instances, clone troopers that had developed individual self-identity played a key role in the Jedis' survival. Survivors include Quinlan Vos, General Rahm Kota, Kazdan Peratus, A'Sharad Hett, K'Kruhk, T'ra Saa, Tholme, Jax Pavan, Corwin Shelvay, Kai Hudorra, Dass Jennir, Na Noirrah, Kai Justiss, Kanan Jarrus, and Shaak Ti. The latter escaped with some 3000 boys from the Temple, eventually going into exile on Felucia, while the boys were disseminated and hidden throughout the galaxy. According to Timothy Zahn's The Hand of Thrawn Duology, Palpatine begins killing Jedi before the Great Jedi Purge occurs. Shortly after the Battle of Naboo (depicted in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace), the Jedi Council approved the "Outbound Flight Project." A group of Jedi masters would travel to the edge of the galaxy and attempt to use the Force to punch through the hyperspace turbulence surrounding the galaxy, thereby allowing them to attempt contact with life in other galaxies. The ship is intercepted on Palpatine's command and all hope of contacting life outside the galaxy ended. It is noted that the Chiss, one of whom would become Imperial Grand Admiral Thrawn, were involved in the interception of this ship. Further details of the Outbound Flight Project were elaborated upon in Zahn's Survivor's Quest and Outbound Flight novels. One of those Jedi Masters killed by Thrawn is Jorus C'Baoth. His clone, which serves the Empire, is subject to fits of insanity and eventually betrays Thrawn in the Heir to the Empire series. In the Coruscant Nights series, Jedi Knight Jax Pavan survives the Purge and goes into hiding in the seedier districts of Coruscant, where he begins operating as a private investigator. X-Wing Rogue Squadron pilot Corran Horn discovers a museum chronicling members of the Jedi Order whom Palpatine had killed, filled with destroyed statues of former Jedi on Coruscant. In the strategy game Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds, after crash-landing on the planet of Krant, Princess Leia Organa and C-3PO, along with a small group of rebels, discover a Jedi who survived the purge, Echuu Shen-Jon. He helps them win many victories on Krant, then travels with them to the Geddes asteroids to reclaim a Jedi artifact. When they land there, they are helped by a small army of Wookiees. In this mission, Shen-Jon dies at Darth Vader's hand, sacrificing himself so Leia and the other Rebels could escape. It is revealed in the expansion that he exiled himself to Krant after briefly succumbing to the Dark Side and killing Sev'rance Tann (a CIS general who had killed his padawan), at the cost of the lives of many clone troopers and Wookiees. In the New Jedi Order series, Vergere is revealed as a Jedi Knight from before the Empire. She was sent on a mission to investigate the living planet Zonama Sekot, where she encounters the Yuuzhan Vong. Considering them to be a threat, Vergere convinces them to take her as an advisor and jester of sorts to their Warmaster, Tsavong Lah. The Great Jedi Purge takes place after she leaves with the Yuuzhan Vong. Her connections to the Old Jedi Order prove important in the training of Jacen Solo and allow her to provide Luke Skywalker with a small view of the old order. Before she can finish completely instructing them, she dies protecting Jacen from Tsavong Lah's forces. In the Dark Times series by Mick Harrison, it is revealed that a never-before mentioned member of the Jedi Order, Dass Jennir, also survived and took refuge on the planets of the Nosaurians and helped them fight off Storm Troopers before helping his Nosaurian friend Bomo Greenbark find his kidnapped wife and child. Once in Dark Times, Jennir mentioned something about his escaping alive because his clone troopers did not receive Order 66. In the video game Star Wars Battlefront II, some Jedi survive the purge and were sheltered on Naboo by the current Queen. The 501st Clone Trooper Legion then invaded the planet, killed the current Queen and 'adjusted' the government of the planet. All of the Jedi were killed in the invasion. In the 2008 video game The Force Unleashed, it is revealed that several Jedi, including Jedi Master Shaak Ti, had survived the initial purge, only to be later killed by Vader's apprentice Galen Marek. However, in a deleted scene from Revenge Of The Sith, Shaak Ti was killed by General Grievous and another deleted scene depicts her being slain by Lord Vader in the temple. These scenes are, however, not canon as it depicts Anakin's first face-to-face meeting with General Grevious, which in the film happens later on the bridge of the CIS ship. The exact number of Jedi who ultimately survive both the Great Purge and Vader is not known. In the Dark Empire II comic book, a pre-Order 66 Jedi, Kam Solusar, is depicted. Partial list of known survivors References Resources * [http://books.google.com.au/books?id=g23D4YMmdb0C Sword Fighting in the Star Wars Universe: Historical Origins, Style and Philosophy] by Nick Jamilla (McFarland & Company, 2008) * [http://books.google.com.au/books?id=9B0K0Rhh2g0C Star Wars and History] by Nancy Reagin & Janice Liedl (John Wiley & Sons, 2012) * [http://books.google.com.au/books?id=Uqt6tCLyqhgC The Science Fiction Reboot: Canon, Innovation and Fandom in Refashioned Franchises] by Heather Urbanski (McFarland & Company, 2013) * [http://books.google.com.au/books?id=P6AqAAAAYAAJ Star wars: the essential chronology] by Kevin J. Anderson & Daniel Wallace (Ballantine Books, 2000) * [http://books.google.com.au/books?id=1_JkAAAAMAAJ Culture, identities, and technology in the Star wars films: essays on the two trilogies] by Carl Silvio & Tony M. Vinci (McFarland & Company, 2007) * [http://books.google.com.au/books?id=Wf4CAQAAQBAJ The Star Wars Heresies] by Paul F. McDonald (McFarland & Company, 2013) External links * Category:Jedi Category:Sith Category:Star Wars conflicts Category:Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith Category:Assassinations in fiction Category:Mass murder in fiction Category:Fictional history